Stuttgart eye up loan deal for Macheda

Stuttgart general manager Fredi Bobic has confirmed the club’s interest in Manchester United striker Federico Macheda.

Federico Macheda has found life tough at Manchester United

Macheda, 21, has struggled to force his way into United’s first-team plans and after previous loan spells at Sampdoria and Queens Park Rangers he is looking for another short-term move away from Old Trafford to secure regular game time.

Stuttgart, who are reportedly interested in Robert Acquafresca and Tomer Hemed, are keen on bringing in a striker to the club on loan, and Bobic has revealed the Italy Under-21 international is also on their shortlist.

“We have monitored him for a while,” Bobic told Stuttgarter Nachrichten. “He is one of the players on our shortlist.”

Macheda’s agent Giovanni Bia has also confirmed interest from the German club, adding that his client was in advanced talks with them about a possible transfer.

Without suspended striker Vedad Ibisevic, who has scored ten goals this season, Stuttgart lost 2-0 at Wolfsburg at the weekend.

“We all know how important Vedad is,” Bobic said. “But we are not dependent on him, we still created chances.”

Last week, Stuttgart’s main transfer target, Duvier Riascos, of Mexican side Club Tijuana, was denied a transfer, with Tijuana pulling the plug after being unable to find a replacement.